PREPPERS: THE GAME is the new work from Casson & Friends made exclusively for the Amazon Alexa smart speaker that asks are we prepared? The game is playable on Echo Dot devices and using the Alexa app on Mobile devices.
In the game you start underground, you’re alone and you get to use your voice to make choices; the choices you make will have an impact on what happens.
PREPPERS: THE GAME offers you a chance to interact, learn about and understand some of the skills and techniques you might need in order for your body and mind to survive.
PREPPERS: THE GAME is free to play and offers you two distinct routes through the game; you make a choice about which route to follow at the beginning (we recommend experiencing both as they are very different) as one route focuses more on prepping which happen inside in a single place and the other on survivalism and being outdoors. Each route is structured into three acts, so if you wanted to, you could pause at the end of each act or play all the way through.
Amazon Alexa is a smart speaker that many people have in their homes; people use it to listen to the radio, set timers and make shopping lists, but PREPPERS: THE GAME is the first time a dance or theatre company has made something specifically for Alexa.
If you don’t have an Alexa device you’ll still able to play PREPPERS: THE GAME by downloading the free Alexa App for your smartphone or tablet from the Apple or Android App Stores and saying: Alexa, open Preppers: The Game.
PREPPERS: THE GAME is the first part of the PREPPERS world that we’ve created; alongside the game for Alexa, PREPPERS: THE SHOW is a live documentary dance performance and participatory programme that can be performed fully off grid, is technically self-sufficient and able to present in rural, small and alternative spaces. PREPPERS: THE SHOW will premiere in 2021.
CREATIVE TEAM
Liz Lubega, Actor
Elizabeth Simoens, Technologist
Ian Abbott, Writer
Paul Rogerson, Sound Design
Tim Casson, Artistic Director
Dr Sarita Robinson, Survival Consultant
Kelsie Acton, Access Consultant
Brandon Cole, Access Consultant
Support: PREPPERS: THE GAME is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England and Studio Wayne McGregor.
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team BIOGRAPHIES
Liz Lubega is a Singer/Songwriter and voice over artist. Born in East London and raised in Uganda for most of her teenage years, Liz has been responsible for numerous well-known hooks on albums in the UK Gospel scene, with some of those artists going on to win MOBO awards.
Liz has released multiple projects with the support of MOBO and BBC Introducing Music and she is a backing vocalist for several mainstream artists having shared the stage with Stormzy, Childish Gambino and Gabrielle.
Casson & Friends worked with 4C Voices to cast the role for PREPPERS THE GAME; founded in 2019 by award winning audio producer and voice over artist Sefa Nkyi. 4C Voices is a platform for novice and experienced voice over artists which aims to encourage and promote diversity within the voice over industry, whilst giving the necessary tools to get you started with your voice over career.
Elizabeth Simeons is a Game Designer with years of experience in creating games that use novel technology, PC and console games including the recently announced As Dusk Falls.
A significant portion of her credits are public engagement focused educational games; she was the Lead Game Designer for Operation Survival (University of Cambridge Museums) which was created to engage players with four disparate museums and show them how to gather information about climate change from the museums. This was highlighted in the 2017/18 Arts Council England report as best practice in visitor engagement.
She has worked with mobile apps to bluetooth beacons to creating intricate choreographed performances for multiple robots. Her focus has often been on designing exciting technical solutions for creative problems. Beyond gaming, Elizabeth has a background in dance, choreography and theatre and an MFA in Creative Practice from Trinity Laban.
Ian Abbott is a producer, writer and filmmaker. As a producer he specialises in strategic development & fundraising in the cultural industries in the UK and Asia and as a writer he worked with C&F on a choose-your-own-adventure style zine Inside Choreocracy.
Ian is the founder of the Hip Hop Dance Almanac, an award nominated video game critic and he writes regularly about dance, theatre and institutional power. His creative practice spans radio broadcasting, script writing, GIF reviews, performance and book making with writing credits including: National Review of Live Art, Diskurs Festival, British Council, Goat Island, Cupola Bobber, Centre for Fine Print Research and the British Library.
Paul Rogerson is a Sound Designer with a background in music production, composition and community music delivery, working with institutions including Town Hall/Symphony Hall Birmingham and BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
Paul composes music for film, animation, theatre and dance as well as being inventor of interactive musical instrument Khoros.
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“After years of research, we’re really excited to be welcoming people into the world of PREPPERS, and thrilled to be doing this in people’s homes through Amazon Alexa enabled devices. With Casson & Friends love of technology, interaction and play, we’re inviting people to use their voice to come on an adventure, and to learn more about survival and preparedness - something we all should be talking about more.”
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Matthew Winston & Lucy Starkey in PREPPERS: THE SHOW (Image: Alisa Boanta)
dive deeper
We invited two of our consultants; Dr. Sarita Robinson (Survival Consultant) and Kelsie Acton (Access Consultant) to write about what it has been like to work with us, answering questions and testing it at multiple points during the development journey.
Check out the full blogs below!
”I first met Tim at the Bushcraft Show where I was enjoying giving talks and workshops on survival psychology and helping people to prepare for disasters; if you’re anything like me you use Alexa to tell you the weather, read you a recipe or play your favourite songs…but PREPPERS: THE GAME really pushes the boundaries of what you can do with the Alexa.
It communicates both the practical and psychological aspects of survival in a really atmospheric way. After playing PREPPERS players will have a good idea of the challenges that they may face in a survival situation and how to overcome them. PREPPERS: THE GAME is truly ground breaking.”
Dr. Sarita Robinson
“An audio game was a whole new world for me; I learned that being able to work entirely horizontally was a huge gift on particularly high pain days (and that maybe I should be using devices like Alexa or a screen reader more on those painful days).
My access consulting work is usually in the world of performance, but the format of Alexa was very new to me. It’s taught me exciting new things and raised some big questions for me. PREPPERS: THE GAME has brought me up against the edges of what I do and don’t know.”
Kelsie Acton
